My life and business is much like a balancing act. Most of the factors determining true balance are completely out of my control as I design and build custom trumpets to your specifications. My clients are essentially in control of how much I work, the level of difficulty and even when I perform the wide variety of steps necessary to complete a custom trumpet. This is probably the opposite of what many perceive. I work alone so there are few witnesses to my daily, weekly and monthly accomplishments. But with every success, I have often overcome some moderate to difficult challenges. This is true of every trumpet order. Despite having some very high end software, machinery and years of experience, every single order is challenging with more steps than you may first imagine are possible. I am devoting another entry to the topic of patience simply due to the fact that a few of my past clients have been incredibly selfish and inconsiderate. There are people in this world who have the attitude that their needs supersede all of my other clients. The, "I want everything and I want it now" approach to dealing with custom makers (of anything) is lacking in humility, respect and dignity. Yes, I am here working for each and every client, but I am in no way encouraged to put my heart into a project when there are a multitude of unique specifications combined with short and hard deadlines based on perceived need. For some people, I believe patience is probably the missing element standing between potential happiness and their unmet needs. I did not learn to build trumpets in a day just like I didn't learn to play trumpet quickly. I have devoted in excess of 70,000 hours to the subject of trumpet design, manufacture and performance. This is more than working a full time job for 30 years. Drawing on my experience as an engineer, fabricator, machinist, performer, educator and businessman, I can tell you one thing for sure. If you ask me to do something that has never been done, I cannot tell you how much time is required to complete the task. There is no way to determine the future when the variables are unknown. I work on the timeline established by reality and this cannot be changed based on perceived needs of upcoming events. If your birthday is in five months and you want to order a custom art trumpet featuring all of your favorite musicians' names with engraving throughout, a new finger ring profile you sketched on a napkin and unique hand carved trim parts, then I'm happy to work with you to make this a reality. But you will likely receive your trumpet one year later than expected. There really is nothing I can do to change this fact as there is only one of me making trumpets for over two hundred clients each year.The process of designing and building completely new components may sound easy. But in reality, a full art trumpet usually requires several weeks of design and machining work, which is done in short shifts between other trumpet builds. This is due to the fact that my vision of computer screens is quite limited. I was born with one carotid artery feeding blood to my brain rather than the normal two arteries. My visual cortex is literally starved of oxygen and nutrients on a regular basis limiting my intake of images and motion. This is also why I prefer to play below double high C as the internal psi produced when playing high notes does limit the blood supply to my brain even further! In contrast, if you really want a new custom trumpet in five months you could order a Summit complete with your choice of leadpipe, bell, tuning slide, AGR, your name milled into the bracing, trim kit style and weight, finger ring style and positioning, water keys, finger button inlays and finish. There are a lot of options available to those wishing to be on the shorter end of delivery dates and in the grand scheme of things, five months is relatively fast. The realities of producing what you have in your mind coupled with my skills and capacity will result in a truly rewarding experience, if you only give me time. Ordering the latest design after seeing the first prototype is a lot of fun, but keep in mind that anything new will require a great deal of work on the back end. It is not uncommon for a new design to go into production 1 to 2 years after the prototyping process has begun. If this seems like a lot of time, then consider that I do in fact make everything myself. If you're in a hurry to get a new custom trumpet, I sincerely suggest you consider the following;

A Summit built with the AGR offers the quickest turnaround time of any model

HT and Bravura trumpets require a little more time, usually a few weeks

Confirming your order form gives me the green light to build your horn

Custom art and text elements are encouraged in moderation

Choose options that are listed on the Summit page

Add your name or custom text to the top bracing rather than the receiver

All trim kit options are in stock including Cylindrical, Grooves, Tapered, Classic, etc.

In contrast, the following will definitely require more time;

Changing your order months after it was confirmed

Not confirming your order form will put your order on hold indefinitely until it has been confirmed

Custom art and text elements in excess are fine, but please remember these add to your wait time

Custom inlays that we do not stock will add time, there are over 100 inlay options that we DO stock

Summit One, Summit SWE and Summit Midnight are special horns that require considerably more time to machine, assemble and finish

New models that are not yet in production will be available as soon as possible, no delivery dates apply as I can only focus so much of my time on new designs while finishing current orders

Adding your name to the Adjustable Gap Receiver requires special machining

Requesting new finger ring or trim kit profiles will always delay your order, but it is worth the wait

Hand carving requests could add up to one year, I can only cut my fingers so many times in one month!

I enjoy designing and building beautiful instruments while sharing vision with each of my clients. I love working with trumpet players from all walks of life and I consider myself to be very fortunate. Together, we can create your trumpet designed with every detail you have imagined. Your trumpet could potentially last many lifetimes, so please give me 5 to 18 months to make it a reality.

As a repeat customer (I have purchased 4 trumpets from Jason, currently have 3 of them), and can confidently say that no one is going
to work harder than Jason to get you the horn of your dreams.

Patience really is a virtue. Those of us that have been through the process of attaining a Harrelson trumpet understand why.

Haste is not a feature you want built into a state of the art instrument made to your specifications.

If a person cannot stand to wait the necessary time to receive the
best trumpet they will ever play, then they don't deserve to own one.

Reply

Ken Gardner

4/10/2014 04:36:55 am

I agree with Mr Zent. A person who can't wait doesn't deserve a Harrelson trumpet. Your instruments are the witness to the skill, care and time it takes to produce them.
Having been a teacher for 26 years I too encountered a number of these "entitled" people. I consoled myself with the belief that people with such a narrow world view centering on themselves must experience a lot of disappointment in their lives since nobody else can possibly live up to their expectations.
I can only hope that some of these "entitled" can experience increased enthusiasm for playing and improvement in their playing after finally receiving their Harrelson creation.

Reply

Grant Beaman

4/11/2014 12:50:16 pm

I am patiently looking forward to my horn from you, Jason! Today, before I read your post, I was even thinking if my daughter (22 months old) or my son (in the womb!) will play trumpet and how cool it would be to hand down a custom horn. Looking forward to this horn has been helping me get through the toughest semester of my doctoral program in psychology... so thanks in advance for your craftsmanship and care.

Jason has built 2 horns for me in the past and I am on my 3rd. This time I went custom and wanted to have a horn that truly shows the very best of Jason's Talent. Yes there have been times of wavering over the past several months but I take comfort in the fact that my horn will be truly special like none else in the world once Jason has completed his masterpiece. I have never been disappointed by Jason's talent and knowledge and skill and I certainly don't expect that will change. He is one of the few builders out there doing this solo these days.